Russian President Vladimir Putin took his first trip abroad after
returning to the Kremlin, thanks to his victory in the March
presidential elections.

Those who hoped for a more mellow Putin immediately received a lesson
that the Russian president remains committed to the tough policies
that he enunciated during the campaign.

Putin appears inclined to give the opening festivities of the London
Olympics a miss. This could well be a form of retaliation at the
growing trend among Western leaders to boycott Euro 12 competitions
in the Ukraine to protest against political repression there. If they
can boycott so Putin can play the same game.

While the visits to Berlin and Paris took top billing, Putin
pointedly began his trip next door in Belarus and the up-and-down
relationship between Putin and the President of Belarus Alexander
Lukashenko took an upward bounce.

Visiting Minsk on Thursday, Putin brought the cash-strapped Belarus
dictator a new loan and promises of new Russian reactors that will
help the energy industry in Belarus. He also promised to help
Lukashenko resist pressure from the European Union:

"Russia and Belarus will coordinate efforts to counter attempts to
interfere in the internal affairs of the Union State [between Russia
and Belarus] and apply pressure through the introduction of
restrictive measures or sanctions.”

A Putin advisor, Yury Ushakov, who served as Russia´s ambassador to
Washington warned that the Russians would take retaliatory measures
against American officials if the Magnitsky bill is passed by
Congress. The bill is named after Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky who
died in police custody after accusing police investigators of a $230
million tax fraud. The bill would sanction persons involved in the
Magnitsky case.

Security Council secretary, Nikolai Patrushev, said the Internet was
being used by unspecified external forces "interested in aggravating
the socio-political situation. "This is seen as presaging a crackdown
against anti-regime bloggers who according to Patrushev are
issuing "calls to unauthorized protests," relying on foreign sites.

In his visits to Berlin and Paris, the Russian leader remained
adamant about blocking United Nations Security Council measures
against the Assad regime in Syria. Putin defended this posture by
saying that this was a way of preventing a civil war and increased
suffering.

The only optimistic note was provided by Ushakov in terms of the
relations between Putin and Barack Obama. He announced that the two
will hold talks at the G 20 summit in Mexico this month and that both
leaders have expressed a willingness to upgrade ties between Russia
and the United States to a new qualitative level.